China beat Japan, secure Level I top spot

BANGKOK, Thailand (FIBA Asia U18 Championship for Women 2016) – China guaranteed top sport in Level I after beating East Asian rivals Japan 76-61 in Bangkok, Thailand on Wednesday.

Japan tried to muster a comeback late in the game but it wasn’t enough for them as they went on to lose for the second consecutive game.

Turning point: China scored 12 unanswered points in the early stages of the first quarter allowing them to go into half-time with a commanding 47-31 lead.

Stats don’t lie:  China had more than one advantage on court. Their passes were easily transformed into assists, especially inside the paint, as they finished off the night with 22 assists and a 66% shot success from inside the paint. Their height gave them double the advantage on rebounds as well, finishing the night with 49 rebounds compared to Japan’s 31.

Game hero: one assist short of a triple- double, Wang Jiaqi deserves the ‘Hero’ title for this game. Shorter than most of her teammates, the 1.70 guard scored 27 points, collected 12 rebounds and 9 assists.

The bottom line:  Between the tallest and the shortest players, coach Xuedi Cong has succeeded in creating a complete and harmonious team, compact on the defense and versatile on the offense, both in the inside and on the outside.

FIBA